SAO: Death Wish
by Jason22274
Summary: What if Kirito had lost to Kayaba in their final duel?
1. Immortal

Updated: 04/13/16

The boss-battle was won, though not without casualties. Kirito wasn't among them, thank god. Though she felt ashamed to discount every other player's life in favor of his, Asuna didn't regret it. Kirito was her world. Without him the rest of her life would have no meaning.

Except the battle wasn't over.

She wasn't the only one who was in absolute shock as her husband revealed the betrayer among them, the purple hex above his head proclaiming him an immortal object.

Heathcliff... No, Kayaba didn't deny it. He was more amused that he'd been caught so early. Accepting that ruse was over he promised to wait for them at the top of Aincrad, but not before giving Kirito a "reward."

Everyone begged him, including Asuna, to turn down the duel to the death. Though she wanted to believe in him Asuna couldn't accept with a certainty that her lover would live. If it meant another ten years to beat this game she would gladly do so rather than risk this.

Kirito wouldn't be the man she loved though if he didn't take on this challenge, risking it all for the sake of those around him. She loved him for it, and she hated him for it at that moment as well.

Readying himself for the duel Kirito asked his executioner "if you don't mind, I have a request."

With undeniable amusement in his voice Kayaba answered "What is it?"

"I don't plan to go down easily, but if I die I want you to ensure that Asuna cannot commit suicide, at least for a while." The last words she would ever here from her lovers lips was the greatest betrayal of her life.

The psychopath smiled his understanding. "Very well."

Damn this simulated world! Though she demanded her muscles to move, to stop the nightmare playing out before her, the paralysis placed on her by the system refused to allow it. "Kirito don't say that!" Her voice was all that was allowed her. It was pathetically weak. "You can't... you can't do this to me!"

But he cold do it to her, and he did. She watched helplessly as the two titans fought, and she could see it. For all of his skill he was still bound to the skill assist of the system. A system Kayaba designed. When the final blow came she wanted some miracle to happen, anything, that would unbind her from the paralysis, but that was a fantasy this world of swords would not accommodate.

All that was left of him was a shower of mirror-like fragments that dissolved into nothingness. "That was more entertaining than I had expected," Kayaba remarked. Swiping his hand down he activated his GM menu. A few clicks on the menu later and a purple hex formed above his head announcing he was again an immortal object. A few swipes more and she felt the shift in her own avatar. A matching hex was above her head for a few seconds proclaiming her avatar had become an inescapable jail.

"NO! I don't want it! Take it off! Take it off!" She screamed.

That maddeningly calm voice of his spoke again. "You fail to understand, I agree with Kirito. I can not let you die. With my absence you will be needed to run the Knights of the Blood Oath."

He wanted her to lead? He obviously did as "Asuna promoted to Guild Leader" popped up on her heads up display. He was mad, and she was infuriated! "I won't do it! I won't do anything at all!"

"Is that it then? The love of your life tragically dies in front of your eyes, leaving you unable to follow, and what shall you do? Fight for your vengeance? No, you would rather play the weeping damsel? I was hoping for a much more exciting story from you."

Was he mocking her? "It can't be helped I guess," he continued. "I can force you to live, but not how you choose to use it. Here is one last parting gift however." He ran through his menu again, and clicked on another option. "A little something to remember Kirito by. Maybe some day you will use it better than he did."

Her skill menu popped to life and "duel-wield" was added. "I look forward to seeing you on the final floor Asuna, commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath." And then he was gone, leaving by portal to watch over Aincrad like his own personal reality show.

* * *

Looking over the edge, Asuna contemplated jumping again. It was a useless move, and she knew it. She would fall, as many before her had, but when her avatar shattered as it reached the point of no return it would only reform on their bed in the cabin in the woods. Alone.

She knew, she'd been trying it for a year now. Every time the emotions became too strong. Depression was the most prevalent. For over one year of her life she had found peace in a world that was out to kill her. Peace she hadn't enjoyed in the real world that had driven her to the virtual world to escape its jesses. Peace she had thought would last forever. She hadn't been prepared for it to end.

Anger was a close second however. Her anger towards Kayaba had an obvious reason behind it. How could she not hate the man who had purposely set it so ten thousand men, women, and children could die for his own personal amusement? That hate paled to the hate that came when he had ended Kirito's life.

Her anger towards Kirito was less obvious, and perhaps more strongly felt. "My life is yours Asuna, I'll live for your sake," he had promised. "Regardless of what may come, I will send you back to the real world."

Why had he sworn that? Sworn it when he didn't know if he could keep it. Why? He had failed! Failed in the oath, throwing his life away for no reason. Leaving her to fend for herself, to complete what he couldn't. To leave this game for the real world. A real world without him in it.

And that was the thing that hurt her the most, those dark evil thoughts that invaded. Thoughts that blamed her husband for doing what it took to keep his word to her. Giving his life for her, as he had sworn. He had fallen, committed the ultimate sacrifice, in a hope of returning her to where she would again be safe. She had no right to feel that!

That was the whole of what caused her anger towards herself, but only half of what caused the guilt. The remainder of the guilt was realizing he had done all he could to save her, but had she done the same for him? She had watched as he died. Could she have done more? She couldn't see how, logically, but the mind is much less logical than humans liked to think. There had to have been something, _anything_ , to have saved him.

She had failed him.

The emotions never came singly, when they came at all. They came as a storm, each hitting her in unpredictable swirling winds of doubt laced with random lightning, and soul drenching rains. Never were the storms identical and giving her a chance to adapt. The levels of each emotion ebbed and flowed, and at times some didn't come at all.

And then there was the calm. It wasn't from the storm passing. It was from finding a shelter to shut it out, and with it the rest of the world. Nothing entered. Nothing was felt. But she couldn't remain there, and when she again left it the storm felt all the worse for the brief respite.

For a year now this had gone on, and when the storms became too much, and when that shelter was impossible to find, she wound up here in yet another futile attempt to escape the storm forever. She had not lied to Kirito when she had told him his death would be her end. She had not known how true it was herself however. How much she would crave to be free again of the pain and the loneliness.

How long would it be before Kayaba finally removed immortal object from her avatar? The answer was simple: never. Not until she chose to fight again. He didn't care about her pain, only his entertainment.

Silently she cursed his name; cursed both of their names. _How could you leave me like this Kirito?_ she thought. _Why?_ She couldn't even work up tears anymore when she threw herself over the rail to search for the release that would never come.

* * *

Waking up Asuna ignored the hunger pains that accompanied consciousness, depressed at the reality the game had forced upon her. For most players the hunger pains were real. An in-game consequence was after a point their health bar would begin to drop. When it reached nothing they would die. Like throwing herself off the edge of the floating castle her status as an immortal object forestalled that fate for her. Instead she allowed herself to suffer through it. As an immortal object it was the only physical pain that was allowed to her.

One year and the pain was the same. The attempts on her life eased the aches slightly, but never completely abated them. It was no different than those who burned or cut themselves she imagined.

Her friends had visited often at first, trying to help her heal, but when their efforts were dropped into the void where joy should be allowed to exist, the nothingness began to absorb more than what they could give.

For their own sanity they retreated eventually. All except for Klein and Liz. Klein had looked up to Kirito. He considered him the best friend and only good thing to have come from this death game.

Liz had loved Kirito. Maybe as much as Asuna herself though she had recognized a lost cause and bowed out. Maybe not though. Liz had recovered and returned to the front lines and fought harder, but people dealt with their pain differently and it was unfair to try measuring something so unquantifiable as love. Like Asuna she still mourned his passing, Asuna never doubted that. It deepened their friendship with their shared grief.

Those two were the only thing that allowed her to hold onto any semblance of sanity. They brought her news of the outside world. They told her about the front lines and how the battle to reach the top progressed. They didn't sugar coat things, and that left her depressed even further. Floor one-hundred seemed further and further from possible as the number of people fighting to reach it shrank.

The Knights of the Blood Oath no longer existed, or they might as well not. Most had quit within a week of finding out Heathcliff's true identity. Then more left as other players found out and a stigma was attached to their white and red uniforms. Where once they showed as a beacon of hope that they could finish, it had become a reminder of the futility of surviving.

Asuna still was guild leader, and she was able to keep track of the guild stats. They were down to thirty-four members. From what Klein had said only six of them were actually active, and none wore their uniforms.

Of the ten thousand who had been there at the start of the game it was now estimated that less than four thousand survived. There was less than a hundred on the front lines and none of the major guilds had held together with the continued losses.

The only good news was that the boss for the ninety-seventh floor had been found last week. They were close. The last party to have fought it had been a complete wipe however. That loss destroyed any moral boost the discovery may have caused.

Klein was devastated at the loss. What remained of his guild had been in that party.

With her last attempted death Asuna had reached a decision. In the game death was impossible for her. Outside the game it was assured.

Besides, Kayaba needed to pay for all he had done.


	2. Rebirth

Asuna returned to Granzam on the fifty-fifth floor for the first time since her husband's death. She couldn't bear to face it after the loss. It wasn't because of the depression, though that was unavoidable. It was the anger.

When she reached the guild hall it was devoid of any other members. The Knights of the Blood Oath had once boasted enough members to fill the monstrous structure had they wanted. Though its atmosphere had always been serious and grim it had also spoken of life and hope. Now it felt like a mausoleum.

Her footsteps echoed, and her anger grew as she reached the grand meeting hall. She could still picture Heathcliff sitting in his chair, smiling benignly as he issued orders like his own personal chess set. She'd been a fool. Depression is anger without direction, isn't that what she'd been told once? Well, it was being proven true that day as she felt her loathing begin to boil.

Violently she swiped her arm downwards to activate her player menu and stabbed at the guild settings. White did not fit these halls anymore! Going into the guild hall settings she changed the white marble walls to black, then did the same to the guild tabards and uniforms. She pulled up the preview pane and nodded her approval of the new design. Black and red were a classic combination.

Next she went to the name menu. Knights of the Blood Oath? What oath had they sworn? To escape the game? To protect the weak? The guild had fallen to ruin with SAO still their reality and the weak still preyed upon. And who had they sworn it too? A traitor. A sociopath with a god complex. Not someone worthy of their oaths, let alone their lives.

The hovering keyboard formed before her and she started to type in a much more appropriate name: The Knights of the Broken Oath. The knights had failed their oath, but they were still knights. They would come when called, and they would take up their swords again, just as Asuna was. She only had to prove to them that though broken their oaths were not forgotten. They would regain their honor, and through them she would regain her freedom.

One last set of commands and she sent a guild invite to Klein and Liz. Both were quickly accepted. A moment later Klein would have a surprise as he received his promotion to second-in-command. She wondered how long it would take her friends to come to her and find out what was going on.

As she had expected it wasn't long as first Klein and then Liz showed at the guild hall. Unexpectedly Silica had accompanied Liz. She was a welcome sight. It had been six months since the last time and she looked to have done well.

"Have you been leveling?" Asuna asked. Normally leveling wasn't an obvious thing. Aside from the gear you were able to wield and wear there was no physical change. The exception was beast tamers. Pina, once small enough to sit on Silica's head, now was as large as a winged mastiff.

Silica smiled brightly, proud of her accomplishment. "I just reached level ninety-eight thanks to Liz. You should see what she can make now!"

There was still an innocent joy to Silica that the game had not destroyed yet. The game had tried however. She recognized the signs of someone who had seen too much and lost too many. It had started before Asuna had ever known her. Kirito told her of how he and Silica had first met, and the sadness at the death of her only friend at the time, Pina.

Though resurrected, that death was still the starting point. Kirito's death had been the ending. Silica hadn't come often to see Asuna, who had isolated herself in the home she and Kirito had made. It wasn't that she didn't want to be there for Asuna. It was the pain of being reminded that even the best died in this world.

Smiling away the knowledge of the pain Silica hid, Asuna turned to Liz and asked, "About that, do you think you can make a good main-gauche for me? My strength is my speed. Trying to wield two heavy swords would slow me down too much but a parrying blade would suit me well, don't you think?" She avoided using Kirito's name, but the thought of Kirito's heavy blades inevitably brought images of his face along with it. So strong, so alive. So gone.

Liz instantly went into merchant mode, preparing for a sell. "I have two that I think you'd like. Both are designed for parrying. The first is a German trident. It's a bit fanciful in real life, but effective. In-game it's stats for parrying and breaking an opponent's blade is impressive. The other is a sixteenth century French parrying dagger. Its stats are second only to a sai for blocking and trapping a blade." She paused for a second, thinking it over. "Yeah, both of them would do you good. I'd say go with the French dagger though. It's lighter and faster."

"I'll trust you on this. How much am I going to owe you?"

A wicked smile crossed her friend's face. "Make me the exclusive blacksmith for the guild."

"That's a bit steep, even if you're making me a legendary class blade," Asuna replied. "And I'm planning on making the Knights as large, if not larger, than they were before. That's more work than you can do by yourself."

"Well I _am_ making you a legendary class blade," Liz said with sass. "And when it becomes too many I'll outsource, but the jobs go through me."

"Okay, but the guild gets a discount. Forty percent." She was high balling it, but her friend would lowball. It's the nature of haggling, and being friends it never got heated. At the end it was agreed upon a twenty percent discount with limited access to the guild's vault for materials. It would save the guild money in the long run while guaranteeing Liz a constant source of income. Having her divide up the work would save the guild the headache of doing it themselves. It was, in reality, a good deal for all.

"So, do you still think you got it?" Klein asked.

That was one thing about living in a game; her skills would never get rusty. She had tried on a training dummy and the skill assist picked up on her attacks automatically, her reflexes remaining perfectly intact. All she lacked is the second blade that would help end Kayaba's life.

Returning to the serious reason for reforming the guild Asuna nodded with a grim expression. "I am."

Klein nodded his agreement, seeing the certainty in her eyes. "So, where do we start?"

Walking around the table, she took her spot at the seat of command. "We clear floor ninety-seven."

Letting out a whistle that didn't hide his pain, her new second-in-command said, "After the last wipe it's safe to say we'll need an army to beat that monster."

"We have a guild." With a swipe of her arm and a couple of taps she sent out the summons to the remainder.

"And how many do you think are going to show up?" Liz asked with hardened sarcasm. "In case you haven't noticed, the Knights aren't exactly sticking together anymore."

"Enough," a member said, walking into the hall in the new black and red colors of the knight's uniform. Asuna didn't recognize him on sight. That wasn't surprising. Though the core group of high leveled members was only sixty-eight, there were a couple of hundred lower level members who were being groomed by the guild to level and join them on the front lines.

That she didn't know him didn't matter. Of the remaining members most wouldn't show, but he proved there were those who would.

Pausing before the table their unknown comrade went to attention and saluted Asuna just as many a soldier had done for Heathcliff. "Justyn Lancelot, reporting for duty commander!"

Unsurprisingly Klein couldn't stop himself from laughing. "Lancelot?"

The five-foot two-inch Asian man with the green Mohawk certainly didn't fit the mental image of the legendary knight. "My avatar looked much better when I first made it!" He said defensively.

"Okay, that's bad enough, but come on, the game doesn't allow for last names, so unless you're saying your last name is Lancelot I.R.L..."

" _Enough_ ," Asuna asserted, bringing silence. "Excuse the second in command's rudeness, and we welcome your return to the Knights of the Broken Oath. I'll brief everyone tomorrow. If you don't have one already pick a room and claim it as your own."

Once Justin had left the room Liz let out a low whistle while Silica looked nervous as her friend's outburst. "No matter how ridiculous a person seems Klein, we can't afford to alienate them. We're short on members already."

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry and all, but... I mean... Lancelot! Kirito would be laughing alongside me."

If it was meant to be funny the humor was lost on Asuna. "Maybe. We aren't going to know though, are we?"

That sobered his sense of humor quickly.

"I don't know how it was done in your guild," Asuna continued, "But here we've always been very strict military, and it's worked for us. Please try to show that when other members are around, okay?"

Any sense of humor that might have remained in Klein instantly left. "Yes, and the Knights survived much better than mine did," he pointed out, sounding sullen. The reminder of his dead friends, his real life friends who had been the core members of his guild Fuurinkazan, wasn't being appreciated any more than his reminder of Kirito's death.

Silica and Liz both jumped in before an actual argument could erupt as the two prepared to cut into each other's wounds. Silica turned to Klein while Liz came to Asuna.

"Come on Asuna that was a bit harsh. You know Klein didn't mean anything by it," Liz started. "He's a joker and he always will be and that's how he deals with his pain."

It didn't take much to calm her. She had snapped, but she didn't really mean it. She knew he hadn't meant it that way. Looking over at Klein, who wasn't being nearly as quick to let go, she said, "This is going to be a lot harder than I thought."

Did she mean pulling the guild together, defeating Kayaba, or keeping her own emotions in check? Asuna wasn't sure herself.

Klein's temper seemed to be getting further out of control. She couldn't blame him. Asuna had purposely aimed towards the most sensitive spot on her friend's psyche. It was a dick move, as her husband would have put it. Her apology couldn't be big enough when he was ready to hear it.

 _After I get him to accept my apology we should concentrate on the next boss,_ Asuna decided. _Once we beat him the rest will go smoother. It has too._


	3. Preparation

Looking over her soldiers she nodded with approval. In the twenty-four hours since she had sent the summons twenty-two of the guild members had arrived. Of those twenty-two, six were high level and high ranking members. She had already named them squad captains in charge of shaping up the lower level members. She had also issued a general call to arms at the front lines and bulletins in each of the major cities informing them that the knights were back, and they were going to clear the next boss.

Only four answered that call, which hadn't surprised her. The reasons for the guild's fall were as valid now as they had been the day Kayaba had made himself known. She was hedging her bets on clearing the floor. If they did that more would come, and then more after that. Success _should_ breed success.

There was also her. She would serve as their secret weapon, an unstoppable tank, and the largest reason to avoid their guild, the pariah that had received Kayaba's blessing. It was actually a curse, her immortality, but few would see it that way.

"Aten-hut!" Oddly enough Klein's headband looked good with his new black haori and hakama, both with red trim and guild emblems. After both Liz and Silica worked on him a bit he had settled down enough to accept Asuna's apology and then accepted some coaching in his role as second in command in these meetings. He was going to still be a lovable goofball outside of them of course, but military order would be observed under official functions at least.

His call for attention had been text book perfect.

Once everyone settled down, which was immediately with the older members, well used to the military precision expected of the guild's members. The newer members and the ones who weren't members at all took a little longer, unaware of the expectations.

Asuna began a brief description of what would be expected of them today. "In eight hours were are going to teleport to the ninety-seventh floor and enter the dungeon. Today's mission will only be for scouting. We are going to make it as far as the entrance to the boss's room and then I shall enter alone to assess the boss for strengths and weaknesses as well as document any attack patterns it uses on me."

For a moment hushed silence met her words. There had only been only one attempt on the boss thus far. For the first time in the three year history of SAO it had been a complete wipe. With that wipe not a shred of information had left on the boss, leaving him a specter; a monster that preyed on their imaginations. Given the hell of the past bosses that had none the less left survivors, there was a lot of room for embellishment for this unknown. She couldn't blame them for the sounds of fear she was hearing even among the seasoned warriors

Of course Asuna had a two-fold security blanket. The first, and the one everyone knew about in the room, was her immortality. The second, and the one she would not announce, was the hope that Kayaba would lift that immortality as soon as she showed interest in fighting again.

"Are there any questions?" she asked the guild members.

Joffrey, one of the older and more experienced members, spoke up. "Ma'am, I understand the lack of risk on you entering the room alone, but what of the risk on reaching the room to the rest of the troops? The monsters on this floor are also higher than any we have seen of trash mobs. We will all willingly put our lives at risk to clear this game, but not foolishly. We have not trained together in over a year now, some of us not at all. We will lack coordination and that could cause unnecessary loss of life."

It was the question she had expected. As such her answer was immediate, and said with confidence, "I expect this to be a difficult journey, but possible with no loss of life. I will be acting as forward sentry, using my immortal object status to its fullest. The rest of the party will stay back and only act as backup with the most experienced members taking the lead."

Pausing for a second to allow that to be absorbed, she continued, "This is also expected to be both a learning and assessment opportunity. With this information we will know who needs improvement and where so training can be effective before we take a serious attempt on this boss." Several of the members nodded understanding, a few looking grim as they recognized the holes in this plan, but also recognizing that Asuna was aware of them too.

"Are there any other questions?" When no one spoke up she continued, "Then prepare yourselves for combat. Take any weapons and armor in need of maintenance to quartermaster Liz," that still felt a bit odd on her tongue, but it was accurate for the role. "All repairs will be free for this first mission."

One final look over the troops, then nodding with approval commanded, "Dismissed."

* * *

Looking over her shoulder one last time, Asuna noted that her raid group had managed to stay intact on the ninety-seventh floor until this point.

None of them looked happy to see her go, most notably her friends who had run to her banner when she stepped into the leadership role that Kayaba had forced upon her.

Looking forward as she walked she saw the two large doors that were the entrance to the boss room. There were only two possible endings of her taking the boss on by herself, both involved her losing against him. The one that involved a permanent death was the one she hoped for the most.

The trouble was at this level there was no information for the information brokers to broker. Their careers had ended, relatively speaking, when the last monster defeated in beta had fallen. The only information they had for sure was this was a boss room, and none of the people who'd faced him had survived to tell anything more about him.

That meant their teleport crystals weren't going to work in there. Unless this monster was so destructive it had killed an entire raid group before even one member had a chance to use it. Asuna doubted that. Kayaba may be a psychopath with a god complex, but there would be no entertainment value in a boss that had no chance of being defeated.

Asuna was going to be the information broker, learning as much as she could about his attack patterns, skills, and weapons before leaving. Unless the boss could not regenerate its health the possibility of beating him wasn't worth contemplating. In fifteen minutes Klein would approach the boss room, opening the doors the same as she was now, and she would make her escape.

Without fanfare she crossed into the room and looked around. The room was pitch black once the doors closed behind her, locking her into a fight she had no chance of winning. Background music began that reminded her instantly of a funeral, leaving her feeling cold. It was the start of a game cinematic. They'd become a standard part of boss fights since floor eighty she had heard.

Slowly the lighting grew from candelabras around the room. Marble columns became visible first, along with white marble walls. It wasn't the type of walls she was used to. A pedestal eventually became visible in the center and Asuna realized the room was actually a mausoleum. From a door on the opposite side eight figures entered the room, a sarcophagus carried amongst them.

As she watched she realized that each was the same model as The Fatal Scythe, which they had fought below the town of beginnings. Memories of that fight filled her with a primal fear. They had nearly died then, and Yui had sacrificed herself to save them. The reaction was normal, even with her immortal status.

They ignored her however, placing the sarcophagus on the pedestal, then turning and leaving silently, the only sound coming from the music setting the grim tone of the setting.

As the light grew she could make out the words on a placard built into the base of the pedestal:

Kirito, the Fallen Hero  
October 7th, 2008 - November 7th, 2024  
Beloved Husband of Asuna,  
Member of the Knights of the Blood Oath

If she was capable of doing so, Asuna would have screamed out her rage. How dare he tarnish Kirito's memory like this! But all she could do was watch as the cut-scene played out.

The entire top of the sarcophagus began to shake rhythmically, the sounds of a struggle from within beginning. The music built in intensity as the lid continued to tremble. Then a sword she knew too well, Elucidator, pierced it, a second later it exploded into chucks of marble rocks and dust as Dark Repulser joined the first.

 _No, no, no, no,_ Asuna began chanting to herself, unwilling to believe that even Kayaba would resort to this.

Kirito sat up from his not-so-final resting place, a smile on his face. Climbing out, he looked over at Asuna. "Well that was overly dramatic, wasn't it?" he asked, brushing off the marble dust from the sarcophagus's destroyed lid.

As soon as the final note of the cinematic's theme music ended Asuna again had control of her body, though her mind was in too much shock to give it direction. Standing dumbly her husband approached slowly, making slow stretches as he readied for a fight. "You know, I really thought I was going to beat Heathcliff last year," he said conversationally as his twin blades blinked into existence on his back.

"You aren't him."

A smile she hadn't seen in over a year crossed the boss monster's face. "Well of course I'm not," he said with her lover's good cheer. "I'm kinda like Yui though. Kayaba went through a lot of work trying to make me think and talk like the original. He even gave me a bit of self-awareness."

"Figuring out your attack patterns is going to be harder than normal, isn't it?" Why was she starting to talk to him like he was real? Even he admitted he wasn't real.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that. I don't have any, though I will give anyone trying to beat me a fair handicap to start with. First bar I'll only use one sword."

"How many bars do you have?" Until combat started those bars wouldn't show.

"Four, like most of the bosses until now."

"If you're supposed to be him you won't have any magic attacks, will you?"

"Uuuuuh... Well, I don't have any magical attacks. I'm glad he didn't. Magic really isn't my style, but no matter how well programmed and powerful I am a single swordsman will get overwhelmed with a large enough raid group. To stop that from happening I can copy myself up to the number of members in the raid I'm going against."

"You're being awfully helpful, for a boss monster."

"Well, I thought a bit of information would make the fight more interesting." Asuna's heart contracted. This fake sounded so much like him. He would be looking forward to a good fight as well, though not the killing.

"Sitting in this room for a year must have been hell on you."

"Actually, I haven't been here that long. It took Kayaba a good six months to get me where he wanted, then he saved me as an inactive file until you were ready to fight again."

Just when she thought the man couldn't strike any lower, she was proven wrong. "So, think you're ready to fight me?" he said, appearing unaware of her internal dialogue. It was proof that he was not the real thing. Kirito, the real Kirito, would have known exactly what was on her mind.

Not that that mattered. She wasn't ready. Not for this. "How can you say you're like the real thing when you're going to try killing me in a minute?"

"But isn't that what you want?" Her hands started to shake, hearing the truth spoken from his lips. "I'll free you."

No matter how large of a raid group, the battle would be the same. Most of the members of her party wouldn't last a minute against Kirito. Asuna by herself had as much of a chance to win as the entire front lines at once. She might as well give it her all then, and maybe save more from dying.

There was also the hope if she gave it her all Kayaba would return her avatar to normal, and allow Kirito to give her the release he was promising. He certainly seemed to think he could.

Could she attack Kirito? Even if he was a fake, did she have the resolve to give over everything to the purpose?

" _Kayaba, you asshole!"_ she yelled in suddenly renewed anger, realizing the cruel paradox he had placed her in.

"As an independent AI, I have the ability to completely agree with you there. Setting us against each other is a dick move if ever there was one."

"Stop acting like him!" she screamed, lunging.

"All right! Now we're talking."

Even the real Kirito couldn't keep up with her speed in a duel. It wasn't enough on its own however. With his heavier, more powerful attacks she was unable to block any of his swings.

Her second blade, at least for the first bar, giving her the edge she needed.

"Wow, I never thought you'd be this good. I mean, no offense hon, but normally I am the better fighter," was his final comment when she finished depleting that bar. Her anger had allowed her to forestall any hesitancy she may have experienced normally in this duel.

As his second bar flashed to life, he said "This is when things get fun though," as Dark Repulser was summoned to his off hand. His compliment only fueled her anger further.

His twin blades were too much for her to block, but Kayaba, despite her hope, had not removed immortal object. It made the round ridiculously easy, along with the third bar where Elucidator disappeared and Excalibur, a weapon not even mentioned as existing in SAO, appeared instead.

On the final bar, things changed however. "This isn't exactly fair, but I did make Kayaba promise that you couldn't kill yourself, didn't I?" He smiled the smile she dreamed about every night. "And let's face it, you really did hope to die here. I'm sorry, I had hoped I could give you that."

With a scream of pure anger, she charged. Kirito attempted to dodge the attack, but only succeeded in making it a non-vital shot as her blade sliced through his arm. Something new happened however: Kirito screamed. Kirito bled. His black sleeve was becoming darker by the second, and blood dripped down his fingers as he dropped Dark Repulser.

"I knew Kayaba had some weird update that was going to activate when I got to my final bar, but I didn't expect this," he finally said, holding his wounded arm.

Her anger left her. Where were the digital cuts that had been such a part of SAO until now. How many players could stand watching NPC's die so gruesomely? How many could stand watching their own friends do the same? This was sick!

Her fifteen minutes were up, as from the door she could hear Klein, then a moment later Liz and Silica banging on it. The fight had gone faster than she had expected. While the first level had taken longer as Asuna blocked and gave the battle her all, once she had accepted what her immortal status meant and stopped defending herself, concentrating only on offense the matches had been swift.

The door was not opening however. She was thankful of that. She didn't want any of them to see this fight, especially Silica. Somehow she had held on to her innocence until now. She didn't want this blood bath to destroy it.

"If you don't mind, this hurts a lot. We already know I can't beat you, so would you mind finishing it rather than gawking. I can't just let it happen. I will defend myself, but the sooner this happens the better."

No. She couldn't accept this. Fake or not, her husband was asking for her to kill him, violently. Savagely. She had killed before in the game. Laughing Coffin too often had made it necessary. She hadn't enjoyed it. She'd been physically sick in fact.

And then this... It was too much. Her body may be immortal; her mind was not.

The skill assist made her react, or so she told herself, when Kirtito attacked rather than waiting for her to come to grips. She had intended to merely block his attack. Her rapier was a thrusting weapon, but her new fencing dagger had a slashing edge. Given that its primary use was to block it made sense it was the weapon she chose to use. She hadn't intended what became of it as she watched herself slice off Kirito's right hand at the wrist.

Like her earlier stab, the stump was bleeding, heavier than the stab however. Seeing it, she fell to her knees and began to vomit, though the game engine took into account she hadn't eaten in a year and all that came was dry heaves.

She was forced to listen to his screams while in that prone position, her stomach making it impossible to defend herself but her opponent was in no position to attack. Several minutes later the screaming stopped. Through her tears she looked up to see Kirito's corpse, his final bar depleted as he bled out.

In the center of the room "Congratulations" appeared in large letters, signaling her victory. In her heads up, drop information appeared, including her Last Attack Bonus: Kirito's Resolve. She didn't have it in her to open it up and see what kind of weapon it was.


	4. Suffer

Klein had experience running a guild. His previous guild had been small, almost forgotten by the other guilds even when it had existed. That was why it was so impressive that it didn't fall apart as members went larger, more stable, guilds. Granted the core of the guild had been close friends of Klein, but when your life is on the line friendship isn't enough most times.

The only reason the guild fell was because of the attempt on an unknown boss. The only reason Klein had survived was because a random mob had managing to put paralysis on him before reaching the boss's gates. The status effect inexplicably had resisted the antidote given to him after that fight. Instead it had given a cool down timer which said it would take two hours to wear off.

His previous experience was one of the deciding factors of making him Asuna's second-in-command. As predicted he remained a goof when not on duty, but when on he was military perfection as he gave orders with authority. Liz ribbed him often about it during his off hours to everyone's amusement.

That good choice was valuable in the weeks after defeating Kirito's double. Asuna's psyche was splintered as she tried to come to grips with what she had done. In that time she didn't say a word. The only outward sign she hadn't gone comatose was her tears that would flow freely every once in a while, and in her violent and restless sleep.

Her condition was mostly hidden, the senior members afraid it would shake the rest of the guild's confidence. The victory had done exactly as Asuna had hoped. The Knights of the Broken Oath had doubled already.

The discovery of the violent bloody nature of the final floors had given Klein another option. It wasn't one he was entirely pleased with: a deal with the devils known as Laughing Coffin. In exchange for their assistance in clearing the floors they would be pardoned from their imprisonment. Of the one-hundred and thirty-six members captured forty-seven accepted the deal without a second thought.

Naturally the rest of the guild was not happy with this arrangement. Laughing Coffin was not permitted to join the Knights, and their names were documented so their movements could be watched. Three of the highest ranking members of the Knights were assigned to keep an eye on them as well.

Within the first week the deal had proven a great success. The murder guild thought the blood a wonderful addition, almost as good as actually killing a player. Klein worried they might get tired of NPC's and turned on them.

The deal was necessary however. The new dynamic had proven too much for most of the guild. Where Laughing Coffin enjoyed the hunt and kill, the average player found fear, shock, and disgust. That they were NPC's didn't matter. It was real. The blood was real, the screams were real, and their death throes were real. They didn't disappear after they died. Their bodies remained, littering the battlefield. Unless removed their bodies would begin to rot, smelling and attracting vermin and bugs.

No, it was not the same as before. The only escape was to return to the lower levels.

Carrying oil and flint to burn the bodies was required now of the guild members. If not available for some reason the bodies were to be buried. SAO had its first burial site now. The boss room, already a mausoleum, was made into a true one.

Among the artisans a new item skill had become available: A coffin. Some were of stone, others of traditional wood or metal. Then there was the glass sarcophagus, enchanted to keep the body perfectly preserved for observation. That last had not been used yet. Even if seeing a loved one was welcomed, with their wounds their body could never be made presentable again.

Kirito's sarcophagus was still there with a new lid constructed. In life he was a symbol of might, an aspiration for other warriors to become, not that he would ever see himself that way. In death he was what a warrior on the front lines should aspire to become: selfless and willing to put it all on the line for the benefit of everyone still trapped in the death game. Though it didn't contain his body his sarcophagus was left as a symbol of that was often paid homage to by both warrior and non-combatants alike.

Laughing Coffin was sent out to scout and find the safe city that each floor contained. The mobs were dangerous and there were no safe paths on this floor. The Knights and other guilds stayed back. The fought the weaker monsters near the entrance in an attempt to become accustomed to the gore. Some couldn't, retreating to the lower floors and not seen again.

Keeping Laughing Coffin on the floor was simple enough. There was no city to use a gate to teleport with, and they didn't have any teleport cubes. There only way out was past the defense force sitting at the previous dungeon's exit. Klein and the other leaders were coming to the conclusion there may not be a safe city to find, only the dungeon to the next level.

One week after reaching the floor Klein ordered the trees near the entrance cleared for a one-hundred-yard radius. The trees were used to build a wall as defense. If no safe harbor was to be found they would make one.

When it was finished no more deaths occurred. In four more weeks no town was discovered and all hope of finding one was abandoned in favor of finding the next dungeon.

After seven weeks Silica sat next to an unresponsive Asuna. There had been a few warriors who had been soldiers outside the game. They tried their best to bring her back. The last, a sniper she found out, told her, "she'll come back to you when she's ready, and not a moment sooner. Stay with her and keep talking. It will help to have a friend with her."

During the year Asuna isolated herself from the world she had avoided her friend, unable to face the memories despite the guilt the avoidance caused. In the town one floor down such memories didn't surface and allowed Silica to remain at her side, simply talking; hoping it would comfort her friend like the soldier had said. Pina often laid on Asuna's bed, snuggling up while Asuna slept. It seemed to help with her nightmares.

Klein had forbidden her to come to the front lines. From what she had heard she understood. She wasn't sure how she would handle the apparent reality of killing something. She didn't want to find out.

Here at least she could help. She had tried feeding Asuna several times, but realized it was impossible. She was reassured by Liz that her friend didn't need to eat. That only left talking to her, and being a friend.

She brushed out her hair regularly, like she was that day. "You should see the small village Klein is having built," she was saying. "It isn't as good as the towns on previous floors since building skills aren't included in the system. It's being built by good old fashioned knowhow. There were a couple of people who were construction workers IRL who are making sure nothing is going to fall down."

Silica didn't expect a reply. She hadn't gotten one before, so why now? She hoped the random conversations helped though.

Kirito thought of her as a sister, and she tried to think of him as a brother. It didn't work well, but like Liz she knew a lost cause. She was happy to get any love at all and accepted her status in his heart. At least he had Asuna while he lived. She made him happy which was enough. She never found it in her heart to be jealous of their relationship. Unlike Liz she knew even if Asuna had not been there she wouldn't have had a chance.

Now she could help, and it made her happy.

"Liz told me this morning that about half of the front lines forces have adapted to the new environment," she continued.

"How?" came the unexpected question.

The brush stopped half way down her friends red hair. "Asuna?"

"How did they adapt to the blood?" her friend elaborated.

Realizing the hairbrush was still in Asuna's hair she sat next to her on the bed Asuna had not moved from. Silica was happy that her friend was saying anything, but disturbed by the dead sound of her voice. "I don't know. I know a lot didn't. They returned to the lower floors."

Again with that dead sounding voice Asuna said, "I need to go. I need to understand how they dealt with this..." She sounded like she had more to say but lacked the words to express it.

Was bringing her to the front lines a good idea? Silica wasn't sure. She decided she needed to get advice from her friends. Bringing up her friends list she sent a message to both Klein and Liz for their advice. Klein was in the middle something, but he wouldn't elaborate on what. Liz gave an automatic reply that she would be there.

A few minutes later she was there, having used a teleport crystal to return to the nearest town, this one. Liz didn't waste time with words. She threw herself into Asuna, hugging her with unrestrained joy. Asuna didn't return the hug. She hadn't said another word since expressing her desire to go to the front lines, and she hadn't moved.

"Oh thank god. Don't scare me like that!" the blacksmith finally said, ignoring the fact Asuna hadn't moved.

Her voice remaining dead, Asuna spoke again. "How can you handle the killing?"

Liz's eyes, joyous only a moment earlier, became haunted. "You don't 'handle' the killing. If you handle it without emotion you're no better than Laughing Coffin." She paused, trying to compose herself on the subject, but failing. "Some of us are drinking a lot to forget. Most of us are simply pushing through as best we can. We talk to each other about it and try to hold each other up. We remind each other the monsters aren't real. It's all we can do."

"I can remember Kirito's blood on me so vividly." Emotion was starting to creep into her voice. The beginnings of hysterics were edging their way in. "I can't stop thinking about it. How can I forget Liz? How?"

The tears were starting. It wasn't the first time, but before they were unrecognized, as if only her subconscious was aware of them. Now they were forcing their way out in a way she had to recognize. They were the tears she needed to spill to begin the healing.

Silica joined Liz in hugging their friend, trying to supply the comfort she needed.

"I wish I knew," Liz said honestly.

With those final words Asuna's tears changed to sobbing. Not long after they built to heart rending screams as she expressed the pain and anger she had held onto for so long.


	5. Aggression

It had taken Asuna nearly a month to fully recover from killing her husband's double, at least by her estimation It was now eight more months of death on the nighty-ninth floor with little show for it. The mausoleum had run out of room for the bodies of the fallen and a graveyard had been made for the honored dead.

The deaths had forced her to comprehend what was needed to reach Kayaba and freedom from the game. That sacrifices would need to be made. They needed more aggression, even if the costs were high.

The costs were justifiable. The needs of the many outweighed the needs of the few, and the Knights of the Broken Oath had sworn their lives to the cause. Their lives were forfeit if it allowed the thousands they had sworn to protect could return to the real world and their real lives.

This battle had been the culmination of her lessons. Asuna looked at the wreckage of the raid group. The ninety-eighth floor boss was dead, but the price was high. Half the defense force, whose numbers had continued to grow despite the manner in which both player and monster died, now lay dead in the field.

Most of the bodies were gruesomely torn apart, many of the pieces missing. Some were encased within their own melted armor; their flesh smelled almost sweet as if it had been fresh off the barbecue. The fire attacks from the add mobs had been unexpected. The worst were the puddles. The hammer this boss had gotten on its final bar left little to recover. Many of the survivors had been sprayed by the human debris it had produced.

During battle combatants become focused solely on the fight. They become blind to their friends, some of which were closer than family, being killed. They had a single mission and stopping to react to the horrors would get them killed as surely as those friends already were. They had become hardened to death now. Those who hadn't were among the dead.

This victory, putting them on the final floor before the Ruby Palace, would assure their numbers would be bolstered further. She would have to attempt to downplay how many had died, but those reinforcements would be needed for future victories.

As always she was unharmed, but unlike before the guilt of that fact wouldn't come. She knew it should. It was what a human should feel, but was she human anymore? Were any of them? Or had they all become nothing more than killing machines with her being their ultimate weapon.

Well, if she had been the ultimate weapon so many wouldn't have died today. Kayaba had never removed immortal object from her avatar, but both this and the last boss, and quite a few of the trash mobs in between, had a counter to that now: paralysis. With one hit she was removed from the equation.

Klein had been the first to experience this new form when his guild had been wiped out. No matter the level of the antidote used it could not be dispelled. Adding insult to this turn of events, it was made clear the defensive counter was specific for Asuna as the attack was almost exclusively used on her.

How would Kirito have handled this situation? Always so carefree outside of a fight, and so ferocious within. He gave himself to the battle, but he didn't allow it to become part of him. Would he have become a living weapon as she had? She didn't think so. He was stronger than her. He always had been.

Asuna didn't shed any tears anymore when thoughts of her husband came. She couldn't even feel regret at his loss. Like the deaths of the soldiers about her she had become numb to it. When she died was when she would allow herself to feel again. If there was a God, and in this hell she had come to doubt it, Kirito would be there waiting for her to ease the pain that would consume her.

* * *

Each floor had grown smaller as they had progressed. It had made finding each dungeon progressively faster. The ninety-eighth floor had been a matter of a month. The ninety-ninth was promised to be even faster.

The trouble was the mobs had grown stronger at an accelerating curve to compensate, and their spawn rates were enough on this floor to exhaust her forces. Asuna had to come up with a plan fast or those forces would lose heart.

That was why Asuna was at Fuchu prison. The remainder of Laughing Coffin was going to be enlisted today, whether they wished it or not. Since they had turned down the deal before the odds were against them being willing.

Her plan was inhuman, but it had become necessary. Their losses were becoming impossible to downplay. Soon there would be deserters, but if their losses were of people most wished dead anyways it would be more accepted, at least among the jaded soldiers of the front line.

Laughing Coffin's orders were going to be simple: destroy every tree, root, and bush on the floor. With nowhere to hide the monsters would be simple to kill. After spawning every monster had five seconds before they would begin attacking. That was enough time to cut them down.

She wouldn't send them out without backup. Archers would stand back twenty yards to pick off any monsters that showed while the remainder of their forces would destroy the spawns behind the lines. Those archers would also insure that Laughing Coffin continued with their job or risk being shot down as the criminals they were.

Like its namesake Fuchu Prison was a fortress, insuring that none of its charges escaped. It was a waste of manpower. There were two guards for every prisoner. Those guards could be joining them on the front lines instead. There were many benefits to this gambit.

With no fear of dying she simply walked into the jail. "Who's in charge?" she called out to the prisoners. No one answered. Fine.

Walking up to one of the convicts who looked as if he was anything but a leader, she stabbed him without further word. "Who's in charge?" she repeated as the digital pieces of the prisoner fell and disappeared. It almost surprised Asuna. She had seen nothing but blood from killing for so long she had almost forgotten what the lower floors thought death looked like.

She could never completely forget. Though she didn't allow herself to feel anything, dreams of Kirito's final moments still invaded her sleep at night.

Looking around when no one answered, she picked her next target. Even if she was forced to kill every murderer in this jail she would still receive the benefits of the guards joining her forces.

Knowing what was coming was no bluff this prisoner's composure shattered. "Over there!" he all but screamed, pointing at one man remaining seated and unmoved.

This man looked confident. He knew that he was the authority among the prisoners, and he knew everyone knew that and would obey him. If she was going to pick a leader among their group he was the one she would have chosen.

"I'll have to make sure to punish Sha..," was all he got out. Asuna pierced where the leader's heart would be outside the game, killing him. She felt no remorse. It was necessary.

Looking over the remaining inmates, she talked to them as if they were lower life forms. "Understand this: I am now your leader. Fail me and you will die."

If they could see their expressions, they would have recognized them as the same as their victims. This was why the two deaths had been necessary. None of them would doubt her words now.

She heard the running steps heading towards the cell door, and she knew what was coming. "General!" the warden yelled in shock, two guards flanking him. "I thought you were only going to try recruiting more of the prisoners. But this..." The man was at a loss for words. He hadn't been to the front lines. He was soft, like they all had been at some point.

"I did. All but two have agreed to my terms," she said simply. "Ready your guards. Those that are willing will be welcomed on the front lines."

* * *

Liz screamed out her frustrations on the prone monster that just spawned before her, caving his face in with her mace. She had learned to accept the blood and guts of the monsters they fought as not real. They were all digital recreations, nothing more. No soul existed within.

She refused to look at the line of trees being cut down. Those people had souls. They may be corrupt and unsavable, but souls none the less. She couldn't stand what they were being forced into, but she didn't have any way to stop it from happening. Asuna had asked for an alternative, and she couldn't come up with one that decreased their losses.

As much as she hated herself for admitting it, Asuna was right. That they were murderers and scum made their deaths easier to handle. It didn't make it right however. It didn't stop her from crying at night remembering their screams as they were cut down by the monsters.

She could have left. Asuna had not resorted to cutting down deserters. Liz almost had, several times in fact, but they were nearly free. If she left it would be one less to get there. She lacked the power to make a change in policy, but the sooner they won the sooner the nightmare would end.

The average respawn of the monsters on this floor was about one minute. The five second window before they became dangerous was all a single fighter needed with a decent level and good weapons to kill one. It was a simple plan.

Before the next monster had a chance to spawn she quickly began burning the body of the last. The game may have become too real, but at least in this it was not. In a matter of seconds the monster was nothing but ash.

A minute later a new monster spawned and received the same treatment. It was like an assembly line of carnage, and it lasted until her relief came.

* * *

Noting that plans had progressed without incident that day Asuna began her return to base camp. She guessed about half the floor had been cleared. The monsters on this floor had not been as numerous as they had appeared. Now they could see that they had used trees had concealed them and their rapid respawn times, to make it look worse than the reality. The bulk of her forces weren't needed, which allowed for them to cycle regularly and keep them rested until the next dungeon was found.

The less competent fighters were being used now to make the trip back for supplies. Food was available from the animals that spawned, but weapons were not. There were blacksmiths and leather workers to do it, but that they were there meant they were more useful keeping the threat at bay.

A twang of a bow followed by a scream told her another member of Laughing Coffin had tried to run. Only the archers knew the truth, and all of them had been guards at Fuchu prison. They knew the scum they were guarding still, and they had seen the evil these men had done. Some were personally affected, having a friend or loved one killed for their sick sense of enjoyment.

The rest of her forces didn't know anything except she had managed to recruit them and they were doing the most dangerous job in the army to earn their freedom. She didn't even confide it in her three remaining friends. Especially them. Liz and Klein were hardened against the deaths of the monsters. They wouldn't accept the deaths of actual humans no matter the necessity.

With so many monsters being killed at such a rate it was inevitable that the ground would become scorched. The beauty of the lush forest destroyed. It wasn't any more real than the monsters however. This was acceptable.

Beneath that ground is where the unexpected threat manifested however as a sinkhole formed and soldiers emerged wearing the old uniforms of the Order of the Blood Oath. That many looked identical was proof they were NPC's. Another game Kayaba had chosen to play.

The ambush site had formed yards from Asuna. The ground bucked once, knocking her off her feet and giving the first mob the needed time to paralyze her. Falling to the ground she was lucky enough to land where she could see the battle that had erupted.

"Archers keep cover on Laughing Coffin," she ordered, her command voice carrying. The ones that heard quickly spread the word down the line and turned back towards their prisoners. In her position she couldn't see them, but that the order was needed to clear up confusion was never in question.

Her eyes searched the battlefield. "Regroup on Klein," she ordered of the main forces, knowing that Klein was the best of the leaders besides herself. Unable to even lift her swords, her second-in-command was the most logical. From the extreme edge of her peripheral she saw Liz charging towards her. "Fall back to the main forces," she ordered her friend, but Liz didn't head her words as she continued.

Asuna issued the orders one more time, and when again her friend refused she turned her attention back to her forces. Most had managed to get to Klein and he had taken charge as she expected. There were some cut off. "Those unable to form up on Klein protect the archers," she commanded them. Having looked lost a second before; they were happy to have direction and quickly complied.

Hearing a thump Liz fell to her knees, an antidote in her fingers. "Move, you're blocking my view," she told her friend. She needed to see what was going on to handle any unexpected changes in the battle. God forbid Klein fell right now, she would need to command. She would have to do it regardless of her limited perspective.

It didn't really register that Liz had brought her an antidote. They were useless on her thanks to Kayaba, and thus they weren't worth the time to notice. Looking at her display in the upper right corner she noted she had another fifteen minutes before her immobility ended. She was used to it lasting at least an hour, so this was considered a good thing.

Liz applied the antidote anyways, and it did nothing as expected. What hadn't been expected was the monster that spawned behind Asuna where she couldn't see to give a warning. A moment later her friend screamed in pain, then cut off suddenly.

Unable to do anything for her friend, she turned her attention back to the fight, ignoring the blood soaking into her armor as her friend lay on top of her. She began sending more orders preparing her remaining men for the new spawns. Most of the fake knights had been taken down. It was now only a matter of time before order was restored.

"LIZ!" Klein screamed only moments after her first set of new orders. Liz had stopped breathing within seconds of the blow, telling Asuna it was too late to save her.

"Return to formation!" she yelled at Klein before his emotional reaction threatened to break down their defense which was beginning to switch gears into an offensive force. They couldn't afford to lose that momentum.

Like Liz he refused to listen to her orders, but he didn't completely lose his head. "Lancelot take command," he yelled as he ran headlong towards her, cutting down the monster, now standing between him and his friends, that had killed Liz.

Asuna ignored his sobs as he cradled Liz's broken body. The battle had not finished yet. Until it was over no one could afford to take a break.

By the time the fight was over Asuna's paralysis only had three minutes left. "Leave her," she told Klein, hoping he would come back to his senses. "We need to get everyone back to position before the respawns have a chance to undermine our forces," she ordered. "Also, have some men stand guard over that hole. I want to investigate it when the paralysis wears off."

"Why?" Klein said, his voice thick with tears. "Won't you take at least a minute to grieve for Liz? She was your best friend!" His grief was working on becoming anger quickly. She should have expected that.

All she could offer him was the truth however. "Liz knew I can't be killed, and she knew the antidotes don't work anymore. It's her own fault she died." She said it without emotion, without empathy. As simple as a misbehaving hunting pet.

It wasn't the right thing to say, but really there wasn't a right thing. It was the worst way to say it, but she couldn't fake any emotion to ease Klein's distress. Liz was dead. They weren't going to bring her back. Without a word Klein brought his fist down on Asuna's cheek with all his strength. She didn't feel it. Pain was no longer a reality for her. She accepted it if it was what he needed to get past their friend's death. And the next one, and the one after that, her lack of reaction only infuriating her friend further.

When he was too tired to swing again she said dispassionately, "You're relieved until you regain your composure." Looking over at the next highest in command she ordered, "Davyd organize the forces to clear the respawns before they become a problem again and set guards on the hole the army had come through."

Friends died. Lovers died. Friendships ended. Nothing survived forever. It was the only constant in the world, both outside and inside the game. Once you accepted that you would be able to do what was needed for the good of the ones who still lived, and the one who wanted to be part of that constant once again.


	6. Divide

_Author's note_ _: The very end of chapter 5 has been changed to indicate that Asuna does not feel pain in her immortal state._

* * *

The ambush turned out to be a world event creating the entrance to the next dungeon. Until then it had been speculated that there was a ground level portal to the next floor since there was nothing above the trees that could be a route up. That it may be underground had never been considered.

Asuna had continued to fight with abandon since getting to the dungeon, but she would also disappear for hours, sometimes days, from the front lines. Klein had noticed that one of the veterans who had seen combat before entering the game often disappear at the same time. The implication had surprised him. She hadn't shown any interest in men since Kirito's death. She hadn't shown any emotion for two floors that would make him suspect ever would.

Whatever she was doing with him, it was doing her well. Her power had become fierce. Her renewed skill was great for the moral of the other warriors. She was the shining beacon, their undefeatable general. Their last great hope, and with each successive mid-boss in the dungeon they defeated her beacon shined even brighter.

Klein, however, was worried. No matter what her relationship status may have changed to, her perspective was becoming increasingly dangerous.

Silica still didn't come to the front lines by her own choice. He visited her often. She was continuing to level, but had decided she couldn't handle the bloody nature of the front lines. Klein was willing to bet if she had come Asuna wouldn't have stopped her, regardless of what it would do to her friend's emotional stability.

The lack of emotion Asuna showed at their losses was, and he hated using this word, inhuman. She hadn't even shed a tear when Liz died in front of her. Klein was grief stricken at the time, as any friend should be.

He still was. So much loss in this damn game! So many of his friends. He could almost allow himself to understand how she had grown so cold . It was in self defense, plain and simple.

He almost could, but what she had said to him immediately after Liz was killed destroyed any sympathy. After that day Asuna hadn't even acknowledge Liz's existence, only the battles ahead.

Even the members of Laughing Coffin had deserved better than the butchering they were ordered into. It was what had gotten them to the start of this dungeon, but it was also suicide for that band of murderers. He hadn't thought it was possible to feel any sympathy for them before watching them sacrifice themselves like that.

Then there were the strategy meetings. Her plans were growing more risky. Though successful, Klein thought they took too many risks for not enough gain. She said it was necessary, and using her past successes she had the rest of the command eating from her hand. That the odds always fell in their favor, even if costly, only reinforced everyone's confidence in her.

The last mid-boss had been a prime example. She had known, _known,_ that she would be paralyzed within minutes, yet she had still insisted on playing the tank. Using her speed she had lasted ten minutes longer than he had predicted. That ten minutes allowed the rest of the front line soldiers to drain down his first two bars. She had again proven her plans would work.

But how much better would the fight have gone if they hadn't used her like that? There were other strategies, ones that didn't require such a high degree of risk. How many of their men could have survived instead?

She was lost to everything but her final goal. If Kirito saw her now, would he even recognize his wife?

* * *

A man ran up to Klein while he again worried about his estranged friend. The man saluted, which Klein waved off. He hated formality, regardless of what Asuna felt was necessary.

After a month navigating the massive dungeon they had reached the boss the reported. Until Asuna reported back from her most recent dalliance Klein was in command. If he fallowed protocol he would wait with this information until she returned.

For a moment he contemplated preparing for combat to attack the boss before she could return and give another attack plan that would win, but eave their forces further depleted. Leaving more friends dead for no reason beyond impatience.

The deciding factor was time. A proper battle plan couldn't be created in a quick enough before Asuna may return. There was also the question of the confidence of the men. Without her it would be shaken. It would increase their casualties instead of reducing them.

Instead he took the middle ground, sending out five scouts to check the interior of the boss room, get whatever intel they could, and then bug out. The worst case scenario none of them would return, which he regretted, but it would save more if they succeeded.

He understood how Asuna could look at the longer view then. The difference was he would mourn their losses, were there any to mourn.

Upon Asuna's arrival, looking sweaty and fatigued, the scouts had returned. Only one had not survived and the information was as valuable as Klein could have hoped for.

Special gear would be needed to handle the fiery field the room was engulfed in. Had they charged in half their forces would have died within minutes of breathing in the noxious fumes from the lava that coursed just within the exterior walls of the room.

Predictably Asuna was furious at Klein for not waiting for her orders on how to handle the boss's discovery. When pressed her answer had been to overwhelm the boss with numbers in a masse offensive. The carnage from such an attack would be near total, but like before it would likely have succeeded and access to the final floor would be achieved.

It took three days to get the equipment needed, including potions to reduce damage from fire based attacks and breathing masks. Asuna paced outside the room the entire time. It wasn't that she felt it was unnecessary, though she was still angry that she hadn't been kept in the loop, but that she was impatient to finally be done with the game.

It was a feeling that every man behind her felt as well, including Klein. But he also felt relief. Let her be angry with him. Lives had been saved by his actions.

* * *

Even prepared the fight against the final boss was brutal. In the end half their forces had been decimated, most pushed into the lava flows by the boss's shockwave attack. Their bodies would not be among the dead in the cemetery.

Among the living healing droughts were used, returning scorched and cauterized limbs to regenerate, mostly. There were those who's bodies remained twisted from the attacks, unable to even stand. This was an all too common situation and they were returned to the Town of Beginnings to live out their remaining days within the game.

Asuna looked satisfied however. Beyond the boss was the portal to the outer walls of the Ruby Palace they had hoped for. Like every other portal it also connected to all the major cities, allowing for quick access to supplies and repairs. It allowed for quick transport of the unhealable warriors, and replacement of their healing potions.

She considered it a massive success as she looked at the exterior walls of their final objective. Klein could only look at the walls in disgust, and his friend was even worse. There was nothing left of the Asuna he called friend. No sympathy, no remorse. He had lost hope and heart that she existed at all within the avatar's programming any longer.

Quietly he slipped down to the lower floors to attend to the disabled veterans needs. He could not fight, but he could still serve away from the unbearable reminder of all he had lost.


	7. Vengence

It took three days to find a way within the palace. There was no obvious entrance, and the walls had been immortal objects. They tried anyways and eventually found the panel that was destructible. Like an old school game the entrance was marked by cracks in the surface and a slightly corroded look. When struck the surface shattered like glass.

In that time Asuna noticed that Klein never returned from leave. As an unauthorized absence he could have been thrown in jail. Out of respect of their friendship however she accepted his desertion. Besides, it would waist manpower needed for their final push.

The interior of the Ruby Palace was a maze. The walls were made of the same red material as the exterior had been. Almost transparent, but not quite. An attempt to break through instead of following the maze's predefined paths had ended predictably. They were all immortal objects just as they had been outside. When attempted to go on top of the wall they had encountered the most frustrating thing any gamer could find: an invisible wall.

That left finding the way through exactly as Kayaba had designed. A day of following just the left wall made it clear how large and complex the maze was. After three days it was clear that if the front lines stayed together it was possible it would take months to reach the end.

In those three days they had traveled no monsters had been encountered, so it was deemed safe to split up the fighters to cover more ground.

To ensure the they did not cover the same area repeatedly, causing little or no progress, the army would split evenly at each fork. This was to continue for five hours, then they were to return. If a team reached a dead end or were reduced to one-hundred fighters they were also to return.

Slightly over five hundred fighters remained in her army, mostly because the numbers had continued to be bolstered by warriors coming under her banner after her many victories.

Considering that number thirty was the smallest Asuna felt comfortable with and still make the area covered worth the effort.

Fewer monsters meant stronger monsters when they were found. This was especially worrisome on the final floor where they were logically going to be the hardest.

On the troops return they stopped at each fork and marked their path. They then would wait until all teams returned, then go down the unmarked tunnel, repeating the process. This not only showed all routes past the mark had been checked, it insured the teams did not get lost.

They would cover a lot of ground this way, allowing them to find the boss's layer in days instead of months.

That was the plan anyways.

On the second day, with no monsters discovered still, Asuna reduced the final amount of warriors to fifteen. On the third it was reduced further to five.

On the third day Asuna's team was returning from a dead end, the last corridor unusually long. Asuna felt a sense of foreboding as she looked at the ruby walls, though she could not put her finger on why.

Then they came across Lancelot, who appeared to be waiting for them. He quickly dispelled that sense. "You have done well Asuna," he congratulated, to Asuna's brief confusion. "You have surpassed all of my expectations. I do believe this will be well worth the wait."

What a child! "Kayaba!" she screamed, rage instantly suffusing her as she realized that the very first foot soldier to return to the Knights was the man she wanted to kill more than her own considerable need to die. The madman had posed as a grunt, just as he had once posed as Heathcliff.

The man chuckled, ignoring the blows as "immortal object" appeared over his head. The hex square never had a chance to disappear in the face of the unparalleled speed of Asuna's continued blind attacks.

He ignored them all. "Yes," he said casually. With a swing of his arm and a push of two buttons his avatar returned to Heathcliff as he had been the day he shattered her world. "I preferred this avatar so much more," he said with nostalgia. Looking at Asuna he casually continuing the conversation as if she wasn't in a berserker fury. "As Kirito had pointed out watching an RPG is very boring. I thought the life of a fighter, as apposed to a leader, would be entertaining this time."

Asuna's temper burned further out of control when her husband's murderer mentioned his name. He had no right to say it so casually!

Her men were terrified, realizing their leader had gone insane, and their opponent was undefeatable even if all their numbers had been there. They hid, or tried to, behind Asuna and prayed for her to regain her senses so she could issue orders.

"You really should work at achieving calm. I realize you wish me dead. I can sympathize. I had feared killing Kirito would make the rest of the game uneventful, but watching you has been much more enjoyable than I had expected of your husband."

Her attacks, which had started to wane with fatigue, regained purpose. Until that point Kayaba had remained unmoved by her attacks. For the first time he was forced to take a step back. Regardless on if he was immortal he could still be pushed just as players could be pushed in no-kill zones. That he hadn't been moved before was proof his stats were better than any player she had yet seen.

But the attacks, in the end, were useless. After several minutes Asuna did regain some calm, mainly because she was too tired to continue. Kayaba waited it out taking an occasional step back as necessary. He was still talking casually throughout, but she gave his words no heed.

At last spent, she spoke breathlessly. It did nothing to hide her anger, "Why are you here now? Shouldn't you be waiting inside the boss room?"

He waving his arm to indicate the entirety of the maze. "This is the boss room," he replied simply.

That was low, even by Kayaba's standards. There had been no door to the boss room, which had been identical for every floor until then. Actually there had been no door at all. They had to break through a wall to reach the interior.

"Naturally I could not challenge your army directly without being overwhelmed. This maze was a perfect solution. There is no end to it. The walls simply change configuration as you explored 'deeper' within.

"It was inevitable that you would come to the conclusion to divide your army to cover more ground," Kayaba continued. "With no monsters found you would make the squads divide until a number that would be fair to both sides was reached. I thought ten would be good, but you moved beyond that in your last reduction."

The plan was logical, as most everything was with this man, and she had performed her part perfectly. Because of the smaller number of soldiers he had planned, how even would their fight prove to be? She was nervous about their chances.

"I'm curious. Have you tried to open Kirito's Resolve?" he asked dispassionately.

She had tried once, though it had taken her months after receiving it. The fear of what she might find, given its name, had overwhelmed her on each failed attempt. When she finally overcame that fear it would not leave her inventory, giving her a message instead stating that it could not be accessed until after Kayaba's death. After that it was left in her inventory, purposely forgotten.

This man, naturally, knew what the item was. Slowly she nodded as she continued to pant.

"Kirito is not dead exactly," Kayaba informed her, his voice still showing little emotion. "His body is, however I saved a copy of his consciousness moments before the system kill him. That copy has been a dormant file ever since."

Asuna's mind could not understand what Kayaba had just told her. No, it _refused_ to understand. There was no way it was possible, and even if it was true there would be no way to see him, to touch him. The game would end today and destroy him forever. What was the point of this? She could not accept his words because it would be the same as seeing her husband die a second time.

Kayaba wasn't done however. "His file made creating a double much simpler. All I had to do was copy it and then alter his consciousness slightly."

A copy of... Of ... That boss was... He really was... Before her mind could lose itself to the implications it rebelled instead.

No, no, no, no _NO!_ He was lying! She would never kill the real Kirito. She would eviscerate herself before doing such a thing. Her lover would do the same. She would doubt the sky was blue before doubting that fact!

"That wasn't him!" she screamed with renewed anger.

She was holding herself back despite her need to kill. Her anger for the moment was controlled, barely, allowing her mind to calculate. She already had found attacking him would do little good until he took off his immortal status. She knew he would do that when he finished talking himself out. He wanted an entertaining fight. She could rest and regain her strength while he monologued. Then he would die, as she had planned from the start.

She would destroy every last shred of him!

"You are partially right." he confirmed, his voice still steady. "His programming had been tampered with making him little more than a puppet. But think back. Didn't he react to you as the real Kirito would? Certainly you could sense his love."

She felt the rage continue to build, but now she tempered it with the expectation of making it a reality verses the frustration of her previous impotency.

As if reading her thoughts an amused smile crossed his face, which only pissed her off more. "Please give me one moment," he asked politely, knowing she had no choice.

As Kayaba began typing on his virtual keyboard, Asuna started deciding on a plan to use when the true fight began. Would her men have any chance against him? No. They would simply be fodder for his shield and blade. Could she use them as a distraction? Maybe. Perhaps she could have them attack as one while she fell back for a moment? They would die, but their deaths would give her an opening to end him. It would free everyone else of this game. It was a fair trade.

Once his typing was done he held out his hand and a the small sphere appeared in his hand. "Kirito's Resolve" blinked above it for a second then was gone. It was unimpressive. A simple back ball, dull as paint primer and no larger than a baseball.

"This is the game's representation of Kirito's file, unedited," he told her. "Let's turn it into something more suitable, shall we?" Putting the sphere between his hands, it began to morph into something so familiar it might have been a piece of her: a rapier identical in shape to Lambent Light. In color however it was reminiscent to Kirito's Elucidator: black with silver embellishments.

Her husband was a sword? Did that even make sense? Kayaba was the creator of their world. He was, in a very real sense, a god here. Naturally he could do anything he wanted. That he had made a copy of Kirito's consciousness was proof of that.

Almost recovered, she was shocked when Kayaba attacked without warning. The sword passed through her as if she wasn't impossible to kill. She saw her own blood for the first time since entering the game, and she felt fear for the first time since Kirito's death.

She had not felt any form of pain since the nightmare had begun. Her senses were over-sensitive now as her skin in that time had tried to adapt to its lack. That made the pain from the wound the worst she could remember. And that was despite the cardinal system's pain dampening functions.

Her men reached for their swords and shields, scared now that their ultimate shield was downed, probably dead. Their fight or flight reactions kicked in at the sight. Fight won as they realized they were boxed in.

The pain didn't last long. Kayaba typed in a command and she was Instantly healed, but she could still feel, indicating that her immortality was at an end.

She could not say the same for her men, their blood joining hers on the floor, on the walls, and on herself. As if to show he was above them Kayaba remained un-mired by the grotesque display.

"This sword can pierce anything, including immortal objects," he told her as an explanation. Casually he tossed the blade to her, which she caught with practice ease. "I thought going so long without fear, a display of your mortality might motivate you and create the final battle I hoped for."

In her display "Item received: Lambent Shadow," appeared. A horrible name. A mockery of both herself and of Kirito.

In a single motion she caught the new blade, adjusted for its balance as she brought the tip up and struck. If she had hoped to feel any kind of connection to her husband holding this blade, she would have been disappointed. All that she got was cold steel beneath her fingers.

Though their fighting styles were drastically different, connections between this fight and her husband's against Kayaba played out. Both were fighting to win with all they had. Both wore black. Both wielded two weapons, one of which was black, the other blue and silver. Both started out using their sword skills to keep Kayaba on his heals, at least at first. Both knew that to lose was to die. Neither wanted that end.

At least for now. Not until it was over.

For his part Kayaba was in an unusual situation for him. His shield was largely useless against Asuna's new blade, several holes punched through it within the first seconds of the fight.

He had not been taken by surprise when she had attacked though. Far from it. How could it have been any other way?

After the initial attacks his shield was used more effectively. He did not block the unstoppable point, instead deflecting the blade itself with swipes from both his sword and the edge of his shield. Her second blade, unable to wound the still immortal Kayaba, was largely forgotten by him in favor of stopping the real threat.

It was a mistake he would not live long to regret.

Taking advantage of his confidence in the system, she reversed the blade of her parrying dagger and used it as a hook on his shield. Wickedly she pulled to make an opening as his shield blocked his own sword from attacking. He spun to avoid her killing blow, but lost his shield in the process; crippling his ultimate defense.

"I'm sure I didn't program that move into the game," he commented, eyeing where his shield had landed.

That was all the time she gave him as she capitalized on her advantage. He blocked quickly, but not fast enough. The Sword-Skill sytem he had created was now going to be the cause of his death as he relied on it to defend himself futilely against a fully trained opponent using original moves he had never seen before.

With three successive shots she pierced his right hip, mid abdomen, and finally his throat as each shot worked it's way up. Falling to the ground, already dead, his clothing was no longer a pristine white. The red cross of the Order of the Blood Oath gradually lost its shape as the red patches slowly grew beneath them.

 _Soon Kirito. Just wait for me a minute longer..,"_ She thought with tears forming at last. Tears of relief at her coming freedom, tears of horror from what she'd seen, and tears of shame at all she had done.

With a violent shudder beneath her feet she felt the floating castle begin to break up, then saw a white light as she was teleported out.

A man in a white jacket waited for her floating above the clouds of the crumbling castle. She had never seen him before, not like this, but Kirito had once described him in great detail. Akihiko Kayaba.

"You're going to die now?" she asked coldly, her anger threatening to explode again if he had cheated death.

"My nerve gear has already sent the pulse that ended my life. This is just a shadow that will disappear in moments."

With that her anger washed away. It was over.

"That was unexpected of you," he commented. "When did you begin practicing to use a sword without assistance?"

It felt surreal to be talking to a man she had just killed casually. "In the last dungeon before the castle, when I knew I would finally face you. Sooner and you might have found out. Later and I wouldn't be skilled enough to pull it off." She had thought hard on that. She remembered with horror how the assist system had been Kirito's death. She wasn't going to do the same.

"Well done." He smiled, seeming oddly happy. "Go find your husband among the trees. He'll be waiting."

Among the trees? What..?

And the world went black as her body... her avatar ceased to exist.

* * *

Waking up, Yuki Asuna reached immediately to pull the nerve gear off her head, only to find long hair, and longer ears.

"Good morning Titania."

* * *

 _Author's Note : This is, sadly, the end of the story. *Ducks before flying debris and rotten tomatoes thrown with obscene accuracy* There will be a sequel! I promise. I wouldn't leave that big of a cliffhanger without having a plan to move forward. We're done with the Aincrad arc though and moving on to the Fairy Dance arc. It seemed appropriate. _

_That being said, I'm going to have to re-watch the next arc extensively. I'll be making notes this time and deciding where things would be if Kirito hadn't intervened since, you know, he was kinda dead instead in this "what if" story of mine. Give me a month and I'll be on the trail again. Not sure how many shorts this is going to end up being._


End file.
